Get Smart

Reviving a TV series after 25 years since its last season, seems like a terrific idea. That's what I liked about this Fox version of Get Smart. It was great to see Don Adams return as Max, and Barbara Feldon return as 99. David Ketchum also returns, as Agent 13. My only complaint is that Max and 99 weren't the leading characters. It was now Zach and 66. Despite being old, it still would have been better if Max and 99 were still out there chasing Kaos Agents. But this series has its moments. Some of the best material is in Wurst Enemies (Episode 6) where Bernie Kopell returns as Siegfried. It doesn't surprise me that it was Siegfried and Max who made me laugh. I think Fox should re-run it, and it should also be shown in other parts of the world. It's worth watching.

Thirty years ago, bumbling agent Maxwell Smart (Don Adams) and his lovely sidekick, Agent 99 (Barbara Feldon) helped the United States Spy Agency, Control, defeat the bad guys at Chaos. Now, in the present day (1995), Max is the top dog at Control while 99 is a Senator, getting funds to keep the spies in operation, among other things! Also, there are two young gumshoes at Control. One is Max and 99's son, Zach (Andy Dick), who has just been promoted to full agent. He is as clumsy as his dad but makes things work out. The other new spy is beautiful agent 66 (Elaine Hendrix), who is a modern-day Mata Hari, using her looks and smarts to defeat the enemy. In the first episode, Chaos is after a dress made out of fabric that will not burn, even with a blowtorch underneath. 66 is supposed to model the dress at a show and, therefore, prevent its theft but the lights go out on the runway. Has chaos got the dress after all? We will see. Another episode concerns a plan to catch a crooked casino owner with Chaos ties. Max actually gets called to help with this one and narrowly escapes death, hilariously. Can Zach and Max keep on foiling the enemy with their antics? Yes! What heaven to find there was this sequel series! I didn't realize it was ever on the air until I bought this disc. Although Dick and Hendrix are the main stars, Adams is in it quite often, happily. The three of them do a terrific job. Feldon's time is very limited but wow, does she look great! Costumes, effects, sets, gadgets, scripts, and direction are all quite fine. One new element that keeps occurring is a cast member called Agent Zero, who shows up as a different person each time, in the name of "disguise". Sometimes he's an old lady, sometimes a construction worker, etc. Now, that's comedy. One time he appears as Robert Goulet, to warn Max, who is seated at a cabaret, that folks are trying to kill him! Mac the Knife becomes Max, Take Care, but, Max, of course, is upset that he doesn't know the correct words to the song. It all works out, natch. If you loved the old series but are unhappy that you've seen all of the episodes multiple times, try to find this newer series on disc. Smart you will be to do so.

I was a big fan of the original series. I was in third grade when it first came on and 7th when it ended. Our family watched it every Sunday night.

The problem with the remake, which was a new show trying to get the startup Fox TV Network going, was the main characters were not that exciting, one being the child of Maxell Smart. Frankly, Andy Dick who played smart's son, just did not have the charisma to carry the show. He's more like this annoying, contrived little twit you feel like smacking upside the head rather than laughing at.

What would have been the problem with Maxwell Smart and Agent 99 (Susan) as the main characters instead of just cameos at the beginning and end of each show, in 99's case just the first show? Better to watch funny older people than annoying young people. Maybe they would have made more than six episodes.

As other commentors have pointed out, the best episode of this revised series was the one that pitted long time enemies Max and Siegfried against each other. They were perfect rivals in the original series, and Adams and Kopell did not disappoint here. I could never get into Andy Dick as Max and 99's son; besides, he had made some disparaging comments about the show while it was still on which didn't strike me as being very smart. I liked the idea of Max being the head of CONTROL, and his secretary was very funny. Too bad the show focused on his son. I liked Agent 66, but she didn't have much to play off of dealing with the Andy Dick character.

I was one member of the small writing/producing staff on the remake of Get Smart. I can't argue with any of the comments left by the fans of the original.

Get Smart (the original) is my favorite show of all time. So you can imagine how thrilling it was to write new material for Maxwell Smart and Agent 99. (and Siegfried!) Andy Dick was really very, very funny. And Elaine Hendricks, who played his co-agent, is a gem still waiting to be discovered. But it is REALLY hard to re-do something that was almost perfect to begin with. Imagine remaking Casablanca or The Wizard of Oz -- Well, in the sitcom world, Get Smart was the equivalent. The standard was just too high.

So, the experience was great, and I have a picture of myself standing between Maxwell Smart and Siegfried that's worth a million bucks... Would you believe, a dollar-fifty?